Rotogravure ink



Patented Mar. 6, 1923.

STATES ADOLPH SG HWENTERLEY, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

ROTOGRAVURE INK.

No Drawing;

T all whom it may concern:

B known that I, ADOLPH SoHwENrnR- rnvghitizen of the United States, residing in rooklyn, county .of Kings, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rotogravure Inks, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates more particularly to printing inks adapted for rotogravure press work.

To be adapted for the so-called rotogravure high-speed process, an ink must be free-flowing, yet it must cover well and dry very rapidly in order to prevent setting off of the ink on contiguous folded sheets, particularly in newspaper work. To provide a free flowing rapid drying ink of this character, it has been common to avoid the use of the customary vehicle of boiled linseed oil, and substitutes of the same general characteristics, and to employ naphtha or benzol in conjunction with a material or materials which will give it body while not materially reducing'its volatility and hence itsagency in effecting rapid drying. Gum mastic and other gums and resins have been usedas this body material. Inks composed of naphtha and gum as the primary vehicle,

and colors in oil, have been satisfactory from the standpomt of reproduction, but have been found to be objectionable from two standpoints: First, because of the in flammability of the ink and its fumes, and secondly because of the toxic effect of the fumes upon the pressmen.

The primary object of the invention is to provide an ink of this class which will be non-inflammable or substantially non-inflammable. A subordinate object is to pro- .-vide such an ink which will be substan- "tially free from .toxic influences. I have discovered that certain chlorine-hydrocarbon derivatives, which have heretofore been recognized only as powerful non-inflammable solyents, -are capable of being successcompounded with ingredients of the ink so as to impart the characteristic of non-inflammability to the ink as a whole without causing undue penetration of the paper by the ink or lateral spreading there- On the corftrary, I am. able'to produce a sharpness which has heretofore not been achieved with rotogravure inks. v

Of the group of chlorine-hydrocarbon derivatives, I prefer carbon tetrachloride or Application filed August 14, 1922.. Serial No. 581,882.

trichlorethylene, perchlorethylene and pentrachlorethane, may be regarded as equivalents, for example. All of these are of excessive volatility. For instance, an ink comprising a vehicle of carbon-tetrachloride of uncontrolled volatility, mixed with such body-material as gum-mastic or gilsonite, will render the printing plates useless by dense deposits within the engraved lines, by reason ofundue surface volatilization, even where, as in the rotogravure process, the time for this is very limited due to passing the platesdirectly into the fountain and then to a wiper to remove excess of ink.

WVith due provision for controlling the volatility of such a chlorine-hydrocarbon derivative, it may beused as the only solvent. I have discovered however, that such controlling ingredient can be part of the solvent. bon body, such as naphtha, will provide this control and form part of the solvent, without use in such large proportion as to make the ink inflammable as a whole. As equivalents of naphtha for such purpose may be mentioned benzol, commercial benzine, turpentine, and other hydrocarbons, preferably non-fatty. Also, such solvents as these reduoe the cost of the ink as compared with ink having carbon tetrachloride or its equivalent as the entire solvent.

I employ such proportion of pigment and vehicle ingredients as may be desired, to-

Thus, a less complex hydrocar gether with a desired proportion of solvent composed partly of,a substance to render the entire composition non-inflammable not- .withstanding' the high degree of inflammability of the other portion' of, the solvent. For example, carbon tetrachloride in the proportion of about 32% parts byvolume to 100 parts by volume of gasolene-or the like. Or, if desired, the carbon tetrachloride may displace the gasolene to a greater extent, and in such case the ink will drywith greater -rapidity.

The carbon tetrachloride or its equivalent is mixed with the other ingredients in the usual manner, and the entirecomposition ground or otherwise treated to incorporate the pi ment or pigments with the vehicle and so vent, as is well known in ink manufacture. Or the proportion of carbon tetrachloride may be added to the completely ground or. otherwise thoroughly. mixed comthe inflammable solvent, the grinding or other mixing operation then being performed, and afterward the inflammable solinflammable solvent of such volatility and vent added. If carbon-tetrachloride makes up the entire solvent ingredient, it of course may be mixed with the other ingredients prior to the grindingor other incorporating operation. I

It will be understood that costs of the ingredients may dictate one of the other orders of procedure, or the nature of the ingredient added to reduce or eliminate the inflammability may influence this.

The toxic effect of the chlorine-hydrocarbon derivatives above set forth is due to the presence of chloroform and other highly volatile substances which may be driven off by heat. For example, by rapidly flowing carbon tetrachloride through a vented tube subjected to approximately 77 C. and thence into a closed container, I have succeeded in driving off the toxic constituents in such measure that in use the vapors from the ink, in which the treated carbon tetrachloride forms an ingredient, are unobjectionable, having no noticeable effect upon the pressmen. The loss by such treatment is less than 10% of the carbon tetrachloride.

Having described my invention, what I claim is as follows, it being understood that I claim full right to the use of equivalents for the substances named:

1. A rotogravure ink comprising a solvent mixture of inflammable liquid and a sub stance rendering the solvent non-inflammable.

2. A rotogravure ink comprising a solvent mixture of a petroleum product and a substance rendering the solvent non-inflammable.

3. A rotogravure ink comprising a solvent liquid and carbon mixtureof a petroleum product and carbon tetrachloride.

5. A rotogravure ink comprising a solvent madeup of inflannnable liquid about 100 parts by volume and a substance rendering said solvent non-inflammable about 32% parts by volume.

6. A rotogravure ink comprising a solvent made up of a petroleum product about 100 parts by volume and carbon tetrachloride about 32% parts by volume.

7. A rotogravure ink comprising a nonin such proportion as to impart to the1 ink its free flowing and rapid drying characteristics. V

8. A rotogravure ink comprising a noninflammable solvent of excessive volatility, and an ingredient to control the volatility of said non-inflammable solvent.

'9. A rotogravure ink comprising a noninflammable solvent of excessive volatility, and a solvent of less volatility'to control the volatility of said non-inflammable solvent.

10. A rotogravure ink comprising a mix-'.

ture of solvents, one of which is non-inflammable but of excessive volatility, and the other of which controls the volatility of the non-inflammable solvent in such degree as to impart to the ink the requisite free flowing and rapid drying characteristics without rendering the ink inflammable as a whole.

11. The process of making rotogravure ink consisting of rapidly flowing a chlorinehydrocarbon derivative pasta vent under a temperature adapted to drive off through the vent a substantial proportion of the toxic content, and mixing the thus treated sub stance, as a so1vent,'with' ink ingredients comprising inflammable substances, whereby the ink produced is of reduced inflam-' mability and reduced toxic efiect.

In testimony whereof,- I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ADOLPH soHWENTERLEY. Witnesses:

. W. LEE HELMS, F. H. LOGAN, 

